Elmira (Pettibone) Wright died in San Jose on Nov. 17, 1899, at almost 101 years of age. She was a close friend of the well-known spirtualist Mary Hayes Chynoweth, who was one of San Jose's most famous women. Emma lived for the last decade of her life at the Hayes mansion in the Edenvale neighborhood of San Jose, California. She was one of several women who escaped unharmed when the mansion burned down on July 30, 1899, as reported the next day in the San Jose Evening News. She passed away peacefully less than four months later.
Her obituary in the San Jose Daily Mercury, Nov. 18, 1899, page 8, col. 1, reads as follows:
"ONE HUNDRED YEARS AND ONE. Wonderful Story of a Tiny and Seemingly Delicate Woman. Born in Washington's Time She Has Been Contemporaneous With American History. Six Weeks More Would Have Made Her an Actor in Three Centuries.
"A life in many respects remarkable was that of Mrs. Elmira P. Wright, which ended yesterday morning at 7:30 o'clock at the home of Mrs. Hayes-Chynoweth at Edenvale. Had she lived until the 4th of December she would have been 101 years of age, and would her life have been prolonged until the coming New Year's Day it would have spanned all of one century and portions of two others. She was born during the lifetime of Washington and she witnessed every administration since.
"Beyond the fact that her maiden name was Pettibone and that she was born in Vermont, December 1, 1798, very little is known of her early history. She was very fond of talking of political events of her girlhood days, but seldom spoke of personal matters of those times. Mrs. Hayes-Chynoweth became acquainted with Mrs. Wright in Waterloo, Wisconsin, some twenty years ago. A warm friendship sprang up between them, and when Mrs. Chynoweth came to California some ten years ago, Mrs. Wright accompanied her and made her home with her ever since.
"Mrs. Wright had been a widow about forty-five years. She often spoke of her married life as happy, and of her desire to be with her husband after death, but had little to say of their experiences. She was a tiny creature, four feet and eight inches in height, and exceedingly delicate from girlhood, and yet she was seldom ill. She had an aversion to much physical exertion, but in the way of light employment such as sewing and knitting, she was exceedingly industrious. She was a remarkably fine sewer and would not wear on her person any article sewed upon a machine. She took great pride in her dress, choosing the fine linen and soft brown silks. When preparing for a walk or a ride, she always when possible added a dark red rose to her attire. She took no pride in her great age and was offended when it was referred to and desired that her birthday anniversaries should be unnoted.
"She clung to life with great tenacity, and during the few days frequently expressed her desire to live. She had an exceptionally bright mind, was a great reader of history and biography and to the very last kept herself fully informed on the political events of the day. She was a great admirer of Jackson and remained a staunch Democrat to the day of her death. She was a believer in a Supreme Being, but was inclined to be skeptical as to the inspiration of the Bible. She retained all of her faculties in a remarkable degree, though some slight impairment had been noticeable within the last two or three months.
"She can scarcely be said to have had a last illness. On Monday, she kept her bed, but she was up more or less every day thereafter until her death occurred. Her only known relatives are some grandnieces residing in Vermont. Funeral services will be held in the Hayes-Chynoweth chapel at Edenvale this afternoon at 2 o'clock, and her body will be laid away in Oak Hill Cemetery."
[Note that an item in the San Jose Evening News, Nov. 17, 1899, reported some incorrect facts about Elmira Wright. She was born in MA, not Germany, and she was not the mother of Clara Hayes, but a dear friend of Clara's mother, Mrs. Hayes Chynoweth.]
Her obituary in the San Jose Daily Mercury, Nov. 18, 1899, page 8, col. 1, reads as follows:
"ONE HUNDRED YEARS AND ONE. Wonderful Story of a Tiny and Seemingly Delicate Woman. Born in Washington's Time She Has Been Contemporaneous With American History. Six Weeks More Would Have Made Her an Actor in Three Centuries.
"A life in many respects remarkable was that of Mrs. Elmira P. Wright, which ended yesterday morning at 7:30 o'clock at the home of Mrs. Hayes-Chynoweth at Edenvale. Had she lived until the 4th of December she would have been 101 years of age, and would her life have been prolonged until the coming New Year's Day it would have spanned all of one century and portions of two others. She was born during the lifetime of Washington and she witnessed every administration since.
"Beyond the fact that her maiden name was Pettibone and that she was born in Vermont, December 1, 1798, very little is known of her early history. She was very fond of talking of political events of her girlhood days, but seldom spoke of personal matters of those times. Mrs. Hayes-Chynoweth became acquainted with Mrs. Wright in Waterloo, Wisconsin, some twenty years ago. A warm friendship sprang up between them, and when Mrs. Chynoweth came to California some ten years ago, Mrs. Wright accompanied her and made her home with her ever since.
"Mrs. Wright had been a widow about forty-five years. She often spoke of her married life as happy, and of her desire to be with her husband after death, but had little to say of their experiences. She was a tiny creature, four feet and eight inches in height, and exceedingly delicate from girlhood, and yet she was seldom ill. She had an aversion to much physical exertion, but in the way of light employment such as sewing and knitting, she was exceedingly industrious. She was a remarkably fine sewer and would not wear on her person any article sewed upon a machine. She took great pride in her dress, choosing the fine linen and soft brown silks. When preparing for a walk or a ride, she always when possible added a dark red rose to her attire. She took no pride in her great age and was offended when it was referred to and desired that her birthday anniversaries should be unnoted.
"She clung to life with great tenacity, and during the few days frequently expressed her desire to live. She had an exceptionally bright mind, was a great reader of history and biography and to the very last kept herself fully informed on the political events of the day. She was a great admirer of Jackson and remained a staunch Democrat to the day of her death. She was a believer in a Supreme Being, but was inclined to be skeptical as to the inspiration of the Bible. She retained all of her faculties in a remarkable degree, though some slight impairment had been noticeable within the last two or three months.
"She can scarcely be said to have had a last illness. On Monday, she kept her bed, but she was up more or less every day thereafter until her death occurred. Her only known relatives are some grandnieces residing in Vermont. Funeral services will be held in the Hayes-Chynoweth chapel at Edenvale this afternoon at 2 o'clock, and her body will be laid away in Oak Hill Cemetery."
[Note that an item in the San Jose Evening News, Nov. 17, 1899, reported some incorrect facts about Elmira Wright. She was born in MA, not Germany, and she was not the mother of Clara Hayes, but a dear friend of Clara's mother, Mrs. Hayes Chynoweth.]
Elmira (Pettibone) Wright died in San Jose on Nov. 17, 1899, at almost 101 years of age. She was a close friend of the well-known spirtualist Mary Hayes Chynoweth, who was one of San Jose's most famous women. Emma lived for the last decade of her life at the Hayes mansion in the Edenvale neighborhood of San Jose, California. She was one of several women who escaped unharmed when the mansion burned down on July 30, 1899, as reported the next day in the San Jose Evening News. She passed away peacefully less than four months later.
Her obituary in the San Jose Daily Mercury, Nov. 18, 1899, page 8, col. 1, reads as follows:
"ONE HUNDRED YEARS AND ONE. Wonderful Story of a Tiny and Seemingly Delicate Woman. Born in Washington's Time She Has Been Contemporaneous With American History. Six Weeks More Would Have Made Her an Actor in Three Centuries.
"A life in many respects remarkable was that of Mrs. Elmira P. Wright, which ended yesterday morning at 7:30 o'clock at the home of Mrs. Hayes-Chynoweth at Edenvale. Had she lived until the 4th of December she would have been 101 years of age, and would her life have been prolonged until the coming New Year's Day it would have spanned all of one century and portions of two others. She was born during the lifetime of Washington and she witnessed every administration since.
"Beyond the fact that her maiden name was Pettibone and that she was born in Vermont, December 1, 1798, very little is known of her early history. She was very fond of talking of political events of her girlhood days, but seldom spoke of personal matters of those times. Mrs. Hayes-Chynoweth became acquainted with Mrs. Wright in Waterloo, Wisconsin, some twenty years ago. A warm friendship sprang up between them, and when Mrs. Chynoweth came to California some ten years ago, Mrs. Wright accompanied her and made her home with her ever since.
"Mrs. Wright had been a widow about forty-five years. She often spoke of her married life as happy, and of her desire to be with her husband after death, but had little to say of their experiences. She was a tiny creature, four feet and eight inches in height, and exceedingly delicate from girlhood, and yet she was seldom ill. She had an aversion to much physical exertion, but in the way of light employment such as sewing and knitting, she was exceedingly industrious. She was a remarkably fine sewer and would not wear on her person any article sewed upon a machine. She took great pride in her dress, choosing the fine linen and soft brown silks. When preparing for a walk or a ride, she always when possible added a dark red rose to her attire. She took no pride in her great age and was offended when it was referred to and desired that her birthday anniversaries should be unnoted.
"She clung to life with great tenacity, and during the few days frequently expressed her desire to live. She had an exceptionally bright mind, was a great reader of history and biography and to the very last kept herself fully informed on the political events of the day. She was a great admirer of Jackson and remained a staunch Democrat to the day of her death. She was a believer in a Supreme Being, but was inclined to be skeptical as to the inspiration of the Bible. She retained all of her faculties in a remarkable degree, though some slight impairment had been noticeable within the last two or three months.
"She can scarcely be said to have had a last illness. On Monday, she kept her bed, but she was up more or less every day thereafter until her death occurred. Her only known relatives are some grandnieces residing in Vermont. Funeral services will be held in the Hayes-Chynoweth chapel at Edenvale this afternoon at 2 o'clock, and her body will be laid away in Oak Hill Cemetery."
[Note that an item in the San Jose Evening News, Nov. 17, 1899, reported some incorrect facts about Elmira Wright. She was born in MA, not Germany, and she was not the mother of Clara Hayes, but a dear friend of Clara's mother, Mrs. Hayes Chynoweth.]
Her obituary in the San Jose Daily Mercury, Nov. 18, 1899, page 8, col. 1, reads as follows:
"ONE HUNDRED YEARS AND ONE. Wonderful Story of a Tiny and Seemingly Delicate Woman. Born in Washington's Time She Has Been Contemporaneous With American History. Six Weeks More Would Have Made Her an Actor in Three Centuries.
"A life in many respects remarkable was that of Mrs. Elmira P. Wright, which ended yesterday morning at 7:30 o'clock at the home of Mrs. Hayes-Chynoweth at Edenvale. Had she lived until the 4th of December she would have been 101 years of age, and would her life have been prolonged until the coming New Year's Day it would have spanned all of one century and portions of two others. She was born during the lifetime of Washington and she witnessed every administration since.
"Beyond the fact that her maiden name was Pettibone and that she was born in Vermont, December 1, 1798, very little is known of her early history. She was very fond of talking of political events of her girlhood days, but seldom spoke of personal matters of those times. Mrs. Hayes-Chynoweth became acquainted with Mrs. Wright in Waterloo, Wisconsin, some twenty years ago. A warm friendship sprang up between them, and when Mrs. Chynoweth came to California some ten years ago, Mrs. Wright accompanied her and made her home with her ever since.
"Mrs. Wright had been a widow about forty-five years. She often spoke of her married life as happy, and of her desire to be with her husband after death, but had little to say of their experiences. She was a tiny creature, four feet and eight inches in height, and exceedingly delicate from girlhood, and yet she was seldom ill. She had an aversion to much physical exertion, but in the way of light employment such as sewing and knitting, she was exceedingly industrious. She was a remarkably fine sewer and would not wear on her person any article sewed upon a machine. She took great pride in her dress, choosing the fine linen and soft brown silks. When preparing for a walk or a ride, she always when possible added a dark red rose to her attire. She took no pride in her great age and was offended when it was referred to and desired that her birthday anniversaries should be unnoted.
"She clung to life with great tenacity, and during the few days frequently expressed her desire to live. She had an exceptionally bright mind, was a great reader of history and biography and to the very last kept herself fully informed on the political events of the day. She was a great admirer of Jackson and remained a staunch Democrat to the day of her death. She was a believer in a Supreme Being, but was inclined to be skeptical as to the inspiration of the Bible. She retained all of her faculties in a remarkable degree, though some slight impairment had been noticeable within the last two or three months.
"She can scarcely be said to have had a last illness. On Monday, she kept her bed, but she was up more or less every day thereafter until her death occurred. Her only known relatives are some grandnieces residing in Vermont. Funeral services will be held in the Hayes-Chynoweth chapel at Edenvale this afternoon at 2 o'clock, and her body will be laid away in Oak Hill Cemetery."
[Note that an item in the San Jose Evening News, Nov. 17, 1899, reported some incorrect facts about Elmira Wright. She was born in MA, not Germany, and she was not the mother of Clara Hayes, but a dear friend of Clara's mother, Mrs. Hayes Chynoweth.]
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